Jiang-Shi
The laughing stock of the Necromancy world, often referred to as 'Zombies with silly arms' for the fact that, well, a Jiang-Shi is quite literally a Zombie with arms stuck in an outstretched pose that makes their only real means of attack strangulation. Or grabby hands. However, one Morbane the Malicious (as his not quite respectful peers refer to him) disagrees with the general consensus on Jiang-Shi and below is an excerpt from his book detailing his views and giving some additional advice on the subject. 'Morbane's Guide to the Art of Necromancy: Chapter VII: The Misunderstood Jiang-Shi' 'Morbane's Guide to the Art of Necromancy: Chapter VII-1, Warnings on Jiang-Shi' "Before we begin this chapter, I want to preface it with these warnings and tips. If you don't want to be eaten alive, you will follow these to the letter; + Do '''not' kill a person and summon them as a Jiang-Shi immediately after. You will be killed before you can seal them.'' + Do '''not' keep a Jiang-Shi alive for more than three months. They will have ample time to plot against you.'' + Do '''not' remove a Jiang-Shi's seal unless you're willing to die right then and there.'' + Do '''not' be willing to die then and there- it is not worth it.'' + Do '''not' think this advice is a joke, you will pay with your life. See the Story of the Skull Queen for an example."'' 'Morbane's Guide to the Art of Necromancy: Chapter VII-2, Jiang-Shi and How to Use Them' "A Jiang-Shi is a vastly underrated minion. Often seen as a regular cannon fodder Zombie, the uses of a Jiang-Shi far exceed those of your typical Zombie however. A Jiang-Shi can act autonomously, able to take orders and act on them without your manipulation or supervision, although it's recommended to keep an eye on them. Jiang-Shi are intelligent, requiring a little more Mana to sustain but they're definitely worth the investment. They can think, speak, use logic and battle tactics and can also learn Magick. One of the biggest differences between Jiang-Shi and Zombies is their ability to use Magick. As with any (un)living being, implanting your Mana in the Jiang-Shi's body will begin to develop their own Mana levels. The same can be said with Zombies, however only Jiang-Shi have the mental capacity to use Magick. A Jiang-Shi, using your Mana to stop its body from rotting or deteriorating, is able to preserve its mind as if it were still alive. This is where the bulk of the Mana is used, however after a week or so the Jiang-Shi will have enough Mana to power itself, allowing you to remove your Mark and regenerate the Mana used to power it. On top of this, the Jiang-Shi will be able to learn and use spells that you teach it as if it were still alive. Even if the Jiang-Shi was never a Mage while alive, you'll find that it is suddenly quite capable of the Arts in death. Your first order of business is to prepare a seal to attach somewhere on the Jiang-Shi's body, preferably the forehead above the nose as to be in a relatively easy to see place and also as to not block their eyesight. Once the seal is applied, feel free to give some basic orders to your new servant. Keep in mind, you can only apply the Seal after the awakening, so be sure to restrain it so it doesn't attack you in a blind frenzy upon being resurrected. The runes on the seal vary with you, but be sure to add as many restrictive measures as possible to ensure their obedience. Your first order should be something along the lines of 'I am your Master. Obey my every word, do not seek to cause me direct or indirect harm, and do not attempt to remove the Seal'. This should prevent the Jiang-Shi from becoming unsealed, which is the worst case scenario and will result on your death and the deaths of many others. From here, you're free to do as you wish with your new companion, although make sure to always be courteous as the Jiang-Shi is a person and, if provoked, may go out of their way to spite you. They have died once, why would they fear death again?" 'Morbane's Guide to the Art of Necromancy: Chapter VII-3, the Abilities of a Jiang-Shi' "A Jiang-Shi, while looking quite comical, has a hidden nature that is actually quite unsettling. They are, after all, Zombies. What sets them apart from Zombies, however, lies in their minds. Jiang-Shi are plagued by a hunger much like their kin but are able to suppress said hunger if need be. A Zombie has zero mental acuity, their minds having rotted beyond help. They require assistance, puppeteering, and your constant attention. A Jiang-Shi requires none of the above and can even assist you in the manner of taking command of the other undead you've summoned. As previously mentioned, a Jiang-Shi is mentally proficient on the same level as a living, breathing human. Their arms are stuck jutting out from their torsos at a ninety degree angle in front of them, outstretched like some sort of parody of monster movies- in all honesty, this is how many people view the poor things. A ridiculous gimmick to pull out at a party or, sometimes, a fancy place to hang your umbrellas. Jiang-Shi are much more capable than most realise, however. For one, a Jiang-Shi with enough time is able to possibly reach the same level of Magickal proficiency as the dreaded Lich or the frankly terrifying Revenant. On top of this, they are also capable of Necromancy and can summon their own constructs and corpses. Any spell you teach a Jiang-Shi they will be able to memorise and eventually cast, even more Mana intensive spells such as Summonings or Healing Spells. In fact, one could theoretically take a Jiang-Shi on as a pupil, although I highly recommend not doing so. On top of their Magickal prowess, the Jiang-Shi is naturally strong and durable. Despite their arms being stuck out in front of them, their grip strength is such that they can snap a neck with ease. Their sprinting speed is nothing to scoff at, either, able to run down cruising vehicles with relative ease. Their kicks can dent and break metal, and with the Magick flowing through them their body will never age, rot or decay. They're also very quiet, able to sneak around with relative ease. They're not inaudible, but they don't breathe which makes them hard to pinpoint. On top of this, if a Jiang-Shi loses an arm, you can stitch it back on and it will heal up perfectly fine. The usual decapitation will work, of course, because nothing is immune to decapitation aside from a Dullahan. However, decapitation will only weaken the Jiang-Shi. You need to destroy the brain outright to full kill it otherwise you run the risk of having it reattach its head or having a blind body stumbling around and swiping wildly, possibly hurting you in the process. Finally, a Jiang-Shi is not beholden to needs of the flesh. They require no sleep, no food or water, never sweat or tire, never run out of breath. Hitting their organs is meaningless as they don't use them and even disabling them will only hinder them. Their teeth are all slightly sharp but their canine teeth are used to latch onto prey and impale them. A Jiang-Shi will absorb Magick and Mana from its prey, giving it a permanent boost to its own abilities. This is why one must be careful when using Jiang-Shi. If the Jiang-Shi becomes strong enough to forcibly break the Seal.. We'll cover this in the next chapter." 'Morbane's Guide to the Art of Necromancy: Chapter VII-4, Unsealed Jiang-Shi and How to Survive' "The title of this sub-chapter is a baldfaced lie. If your Jiang-Shi is unsealed for any reason, you will not survive. If a Jiang-Shi belonging to you breaks its Seal by any means, one should immediately flee via air if possible, but know that the rest of your life will be spent being hunted by one of the most horrific beasts to ever grace the world. This entire chapter I've been building up to what happens if you misuse a Jiang-Shi, and this section will elaborate on why I urge immense caution in making use of Jiang-Shi. Now, when bringing up the unsealed Jiang-Shi to others, they always laugh in my face. 'I can kill that', they say confidently, having never seen one in their life before. I guarantee you, reader, you will not kill an unsealed Jiang-Shi. As a concept, when my fellows hear 'An unsealed Jiang-Shi can use their arms properly and do what they want', they laugh and scoff at it. On paper it's underwhelming and, as made apparent, laughable. In reality, however, it is the exact opposite. An unsealed Jiang-Shi is utterly terrifying. When unsealed, your entire ability to control the Jiang-Shi is destroyed. The restrictions placed upon it are gone, it can act on its own whims, and it can finally show off its true power. On top of that, the Jiang-Shi knows that you can seal it if it slips up, immediately putting a bullseye on your back- and the Jiang-Shi will not hesitate. If you're able, you need to escape the unsealed Jiang-Shi via air '''immediately'. You would never be able to outrun it or properly defend yourself, so escaping via air is the only feasible option. However, keep in mind that the Jiang-Shi will most likely leap after you so you must be prepared to evade it.'' Two things can happen when a Jiang-Shi is unsealed. If it lacks the proper amount of Mana, the Jiang-Shi will be set on a similar path to regular Zombies and eventually rot and die. It will go berserk once let off its leash and massacre anything and everything nearby, including you. However, the thing you need to worry about is when a Jiang-Shi is unsealed and it does have enough Mana to sustain itself. This Jiang-Shi will not go berserk, meaning it will hunt you exclusively. It will also retain everything you've taught it, but is now much, much more dangerous. Having zero restraint, the physical and Magickal attributes of the Jiang-Shi skyrocket to their true proportions and create a monster far less Zombie and much more similar to a Type A Vampire. An unsealed Jiang-Shi is much more akin to a Type A Vampire than a Zombie at this point. If allowed to develop their own Mana pool to the point of self sufficiency, you now have a threat capable of terrorising an entire country singlehandedly on the loose- and it's coming for you. They're almost blindingly fast, able to rip a human in half with zero effort, their nails can tear through metal like a knife through butte, their teeth can pierce even tough leather hides. They do not sweat, they don't tire, they don't need to sleep and they can suppress their appetites- it's not like they'll die of starvation or dehydration. They can blend in almost perfectly to human society- the only way to know their true nature is to check for their pulse or smell the scent of their breath. Naturally, as a corpse, their breath is horrible. Unless they brush their teeth, take mints, use mouthwash and everything they'll have easy access to with our current society. You now have what is essentially an extremely durable murderous Type A Vampire hunting for your blood. Congratulations. You may be wondering 'Morbane, I've killed a Type A Vampire before, so how is this bad?' Well, you probably used a proper Vampire Hunting kit for that. That doesn't work against a Jiang-Shi. They're immune to Magick, they can reattach and regenerate limbs without drinking blood. They can survive indefinitely without food or water, they can go eternity without sleep. You cannot. A Vampire has limitations and tells. The sunlight weakens them, you know they're a Vampire from the outset from their pupils. A Jiang-Shi is essentially a perfect assassin and has even more fangs than a Vampire- all of its teeth are sharp as knives. Crosses don't work, garlic doesn't disgust them, the sunlight only hurts their eyes a little. You may have killed a Type A Vampire, but that was because you took advantage of their weaknesses. A Jiang-Shi has none. This is why I urge caution. This is why you should never chuckle at the idea of a Jiang-Shi or compare them to a regular Zombie. A Jiang-Shi is quite capable of destroying an entire city by itself if given enough time, and even experienced Mages are like to die in combat with it. On top of this, it can hide in plain sight and you won't know until your throat is being torn out. Do not underestimate the Jiang-Shi, ever, even if it seems witless and unremarkable- a Jiang-Shi is a force to be reckoned with. If you need more convincing, I recommend inquiring on the Skull Queen and the massacres she caused upon her unsealing. Once again, be very, very careful with Jiang-Shi; do not let them plot, do not give them a chance to unseal, and do not, under any circumstances, unseal them yourself."